


Chosen Brothers

by Freedom_Shamrock



Series: Aang Week 2015 [5]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Aang Week, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-14
Updated: 2016-11-14
Packaged: 2018-08-31 00:50:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,088
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8556103
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Freedom_Shamrock/pseuds/Freedom_Shamrock
Summary: Aang takes an Ember Island vacation with Sokka and Zuko.  Chronologically follows "Recollections."





	

Sokka and Zuko settled across the pai sho table from each other, tiles rattling in their hands as they prepared their initial layouts. Aang pulled over a cushion to watch. It was the first evening of a week-long vacation, and it was drizzling.

As Sokka made his first move, one that caused Zuko raise an eyebrow in confusion, the water tribe man broke the silence. “So Aang, you going to tell us why we’re here yet, or do we have to figure it out like one of your spirit world adventures?”

His opponent covered his laugh with a cough, and reached out to move a tile on his side.

“We’re on vacation,” Aang said keeping his face as blank as if Koh had joined their game. “What’s to puzzle out of that?”

Without looking away from the board, Sokka moved his next tile, clearly another move the firebender found odd. “Yeah, yeah. Ember Island is a great vacation spot, especially when you can stay at the Fire Lord’s house. But here we are on a guys only get away when I would have expected you to be angling for extra alone time with my sister." Aang opened his mouth to respond, but was abruptly cut off. "And for the love of Hei Bai, don’t tell me what you two have been doing with your usual alone time. I don’t need more oogies.”

Zuko didn’t bother hiding his chuckle.

Aang suspected his friend just enjoyed being difficult, and found this an easy way to tease. “I wasn’t going to,” he insisted. “I respect your lack of interest in that subject.”

Sokka paused, one finger hovering over a tile, and turned to glance at Aang. “I’m not sure if I should find that response reassuring or troubling.”

Aang rolled his eyes. “I can’t win with you, can I?”

“Nope. Which is why I’m playing you next." Sokka grinned, looking somewhat predatory.

"So he’s playing the loser of this round?” Zuko asked, sliding a tile into its new position in preparation of taking over the board.

“Don’t get cocky over there, mister peaceful loving Fire Lord,” Sokka retorted. “Didn’t Ursa ever teach you not to count your turtle-ducks before they’re hatched?”

At one time such repartee would have left Zuko visibly steaming, but the successes of the last few years allowed him to relax a bit. He was much more confident in his abilities and decisions, which decreased his compulsive intensity a bit. Aang noticed his friend’s firebending had become more fluid and flowing in the last few months, though he hadn’t brought it up yet. He wasn’t sure if Zuko was even aware of the change, and he didn’t want to make him self-conscious all over again.

“Who have you been playing against recently?” Zuko asked in disgust. “I’d just gotten used to your style, but this is a whole new level of random chaos." He waved to Sokka’s tiles. "I’m going to have to talk to Master Piandao about remedial lessons.”

“I beat Master Piandao with this strategy about two weeks ago,” Sokka said, nonchalantly. “I’m trying to perfect it before I try it on your uncle.”

Zuko gawked across the board. “You beat Piandao? With this…" He gestured again. "This mess?”

“You shouldn’t be so surprised,” Aang suggested. “Sokka’s a genius." Both men turned to stare at him as though it were the last thing they expected him to say. "What?”

“He’s a genius?” Zuko demanded, close to laughing again.

“Enough with the doubt, your fieriness,” Sokka said firmly. “Not that I don’t appreciate the sentiment, Aang, but where is this coming from?" His blue eyes narrowed slightly. "You aren’t trying to butter me up for some reason are you?”

“What? Of course not." Aang shook his head. "It’s just… you are a genius, Sokka. I thought you knew that. I mean, you were always our idea guy back when we were traveling during the war. Since then, you’ve continued along the same line." He glanced down at the pai sho board and pointed to the arrangement of tiles. "This. It’s a perfect example. You don’t think like anyone else, so you come up with ideas no one’s ever thought of." The others looked down at the board, mulling over his words. "I had a brother like you back at the Southern Air Temple. He wasn’t a bending prodigy like me, but he came up with some amazing uses for our airbending. Things the masters hadn’t even thought of.”

“You had a brother?” Zuko asked, his face a little pale, and his eyes haunted.

“All the boys at the temple were my brothers,” Aang explained. “I had fifty or so older brothers who helped me when I was stumped on my studies. I had another thirty brothers about my age who played air ball, hide and seek, and went on adventures with me. And I had roughly fifty younger brothers who looked up to me to teach them to tie their boots and shave their heads.”

“That’s a seriously huge family,” Sokka said, impressed.

“Did you have any real brothers or sisters?” Zuko hesitantly asked.

“They were my real brothers,” Aang said quietly, a small frown of confusion on his face. "I mean we obviously weren’t related by blood. We didn’t all have the same parents, though some of us shared one or more parent. That wasn’t a real important thing to my people.“ The other two men stared at him in silence. "I think we’ve all seen that blood kinship doesn’t guarantee a familial relationship. And some of our strongest connections are with people we have no blood connection to.”

“I can’t argue with that,” Zuko said quietly.

“I’m sorry,” Sokka said quietly, all hints of amusement and sarcasm set aside. "I don’t think I truly realized back then, or even until just now, that you went from having this really big family to having no one.“

Aang shook his head. "I never had no one.”

“As wonderful as he is, Appa doesn’t count,” the water tribe man said, worry clear on his face.

Aang smiled. "I wasn’t talking about him. I was talking about you.“ He reached out and rested one pale hand on Sokka’s shoulder. "By the time I accepted that the airbenders were gone, I had you.”

“And Katara,” Sokka pointed out.

Aang nodded. "My love for my people was reborn in new love for Katara. But you took the place of my brothers.“ He glanced at Zuko. "And eventually you did, too, Hotman.”

**Author's Note:**

> Prompt: Brothers  
> Note: This was written as a speed-writing exercise, where I was given 30 minutes to write an entire story, no editing allowed after the timer goes off (aside from typos). I have no idea if this is any good. My asthma has kicked in, and this is not when I do my best editing. Or thinking.


End file.
